Friday, 25 July 2014

Designer and Beauty Shopping Haul

Today I wanted to share with you my final haul from my honeymoon to America and Barbados. Hopefully by now you'll have seen all of my haul posts from my honeymoon trip but in case you haven't, I thought I'd compile all of the individual ones at the end of this post too.

It all started in the airport with a little duty free shopping...

I've been looking for a beautiful kimono for AGES and when I saw the Ameline Printed Kimono in Monsoon I just had to have. The boho chic look is perfect for the summer months and looks great worn over a cami and jeans. I love the print which features exotic florals and the bead and sequin detailing around the edge. Its was a little more pricey than other kimonos I have seen but it is really gorgeous and so worth it.

Mr WLL and I saved up to purchase a new camera at the airport. We have our DSLR but we wanted a little point and shoot to take on honeymoon with us as although a big fancy pants camera tends to take better photographs, it isn't the most practical for when you're out and about. We went for the Cannon Powershot S120 with a 16GB memory card to store all of our honeymoon pics on and an Acne Made case in grey and coral to keep the camera well protected in our bag. So that we could both listen to our iPod at the same time, we picked up one of the Proporta Stereo Splitters. Next we headed to the beauty area and I bought one of my favourite holiday tan products- the Lancaster Tan Maximiser. Its an after sun that aims to prolong the length of your tan which I am ALL FOR! This is a travel exclusive size and was £21.50 so a great saving compared to buying it online and I used this SO much while we were away.

The last things I bought before we got on the plane were a couple of Chanel lipsticks. The Rouge Coco Shine in the colour Boy which was £20.70 and the Rouge Allure in Supernante which was £21.35- both amazing savings off the usual prices so I'll definitely be picking Chanel lippies up from duty free in future. I'll do a lip post soon and review both of these for you all.

The last thing that I bought in duty free was the Lalique Satine perfume. I'd never heard of it until just before my honeymoon when my friend Geri was wearing it. It smells gorgeous, quite mature and definitely a fragrance I'd wear at night I think. I'll review this perfume once I've got over this sinusitis and can appreciate the scent of it lol!

Now moving onto the purchases that I made in America and Barbados. You'll notice that a lot of my purchases are bags and accessories. I'm not sure whether I've mentioned this before so pardon me if I am repeating myself but I'm trying to slowly whittle down the number of high street bags and accessories that I have in favour of replacing them with their designer counterparts. Designer goodies are my vice in life (hey, it's better than alcohol isn't it... and probably just as damaging on the bank balance over time) and so rather than have six black clutches from Primark and New Look, I'd like to get to the point where I've just got one black designer clutch which is of superb quality that I can still use when I'm 35 as when I'm 25. The same goes for other colours and for different accessories.

On that note, lets start with the bags and accessories before moving on to clothes and beauty bits...

When I first booked my trip to America, I had my eyes on two things; a Rocco and a Rockie. While these Alexander Wang bags are still expensive, they are a little bit cheaper in America than they are in the UK and I have wanted them the Rocco in particular for years. The colours I was looking for was a coral in the Rockie and a lilac grey in the Rocco however the only store I could find to sell them was Nordstrom and even then they didn't have any in store and I had to order it in to that particular shop in the Florida Mall, which was a bit of a pain.

The only bag that they had in the colour that I wanted was the coral Rockie. They had other coloured Rocco's but I didn't see the point in buying something if it wasn't completely what I wanted. After a quick look on some of the UK sites, it looks as though I've missed the boat with the particular colour grey Rocco; perhaps it just wasn't meant to be. The Rockie, however, was a different story and this beautiful baby became mine.

This is the Rockie in the colour soft nectar with pale gold hardware. It can be worn over the shoulder as a mini duffle bag or across the body with the shoulder strap or it can be held with the handles on the top of the bag. It zips round to open it and insider the lining is a beautiful soft grey. There is plenty room inside to fit everything I need and there's some internal compartments too- two pouches to pop a phone and a lippy in and one zipped compartment. On the side of the bag there is a zipped compartment too that would be great for popping my car keys or phone in so that I don't have to open the bag to get to them. The soft coral colour is simply perfect for the spring and summer and I already know that I'm going to get so much wear out of it!

You can visit the Alexander Wang online store here and you can also shop on Nordstrom here both in the UK, USA and other countries.

Rebecca Minkoff

I had been looking for a bag to wear on my shoulder for a long time. I'd seen the Rebecca Minkoff styles online and on other girls blogs but I was really reluctant to buy one without seeing them in the flesh first as I wasn't sure on how they would feel and how they would look against my frame.

While we were away, I went into Nordstrom to look for the AW Rockie and saw the Rebecca Minkoff Mini Mac bags on a stand. It was love at first sight.

I bought the one on the left first which is in the colour Biscuit and it has rose gold hardware. This is an ideal bag for day or evening use and it goes with so many different outfits. The bag on the right is another Mini Mac in the colour Twilight Blue with gunmetal hardware. This is a really out there colour for me and at first I just bought the biscuit bag but I got back to the hotel and kept lusting after the Twilight Blue colours so when we went back to Nordstrom, I decided to take the plunge and buy it. I've worn it a few times since I got home and I love it. I don't have that much that goes with it so if you know of any clothing, shoes or accessories you think would match the bag then PLEASE let me know in the comments!

These were $195 each, plus tax, which is just over £120... I think! You can order them online from Nordstrom and have them shipped to the UK. You can also get Rebecca Minkoff bags from Shopbop who offer free international shipping and Little Black Book of Style who are a UK based company.

Ralph Lauren

While we were in the Premium Outlet Mall in Florida, we headed into the Ralph Lauren Factory Store. I'm a huge fan of Ralph Lauren and have been for years. I use their polos for the gym and like to layer them up with their jumpers for uni.

We mostly went into Ralph Lauren to look for some clothes for Mr WLL however I spotted some of their socks and had to pick them up as they were a really good priced compared to the UK. I guess some may think its a little excessive to buy these kinds of socks when we have Primark so cheaply in the UK. Basically, I used to always buy socks in bulk from places like Matalan and Primark but I found that they wouldn't wash particularly well and I like my socks to be soft and flexible.

I started wearing Calvin Klein socks a couple of years ago and never looked back. They're a little thicker than the socks I used to buy so they keep my feet warm in the winter but they don't make my feet over heat in the summer. They feel soft and comfortable on my feet and wash incredibly well. When I saw that Ralph Lauren had some similar, I invested in those too in lots of different colours. I don't wear socks very often, only when I'm wearing boots in the winter or trainers throughout the year for the gym, so I don't mind investing in them as I know they'll last.

I bought three of the 3 packs for $11.50 each and one of the 4 packs for $11.50.

The last item I bought from Ralph Lauren was this gorgeous floppy sun hat. I always think of Jennifer Lopez when I think of large hats like this... I'm not sure why, perhaps she wore one years ago. I'll be wearing this hat this summer with dresses and cute summer outfits. I love the white detailing and bamboo ring on the white band. The hat was $39.99.

One shop that I was really happy to see while I was away was Kate Spade. I'd heard a lot about Kate Spade online and everything that I'd seen from the shop looked so pretty. When I went into the store, there was so many beautiful bags and accessories, all in really pretty spring colours like lavender and mint however it was the accessories that I was drawn to.

The Keri Cabana Tile Make Up Bag is an absolutely gorgeous make up bag, mainly because of its super colourful pattern. I have quite a few large toiletry bags for travelling but I don't really have many make up bags as I don't tend to use them. I bought this one to use when I carry a larger bag to keep the smaller items in my bag in because I'm sick of having to hunt in the bottom of my bag for headphones or some chewing gum! This make up bag is really good quality, its like a saffiano leather style and the inside is wipe clean which is great for if any make up products leak in there. It was $55 dollars from the Kate Spade shop at the Premium Outlets.

I also bought the Darla purse which was on offer for $45.90 down from $85. This one has saffiano embossing which gives the leather a gorgeous texture. It has a window on the back to put my driving license in and it opens with a popper closure to reveal a key ring, zipped coin pocket and space for cards and folded notes. I thought that this would make the perfect purse to take with me on wild nights out as it keeps all of my essentials secure in one place... unless I happen to lose the purse in which case I've lost everything and it was a complete waste of time!

When we were in Barbados we popped to the Lime Grove shopping centre to have a few drinks in some of the bars that were there. We went into Louis Vuitton to check out the Neverfulls but I just couldn't choose between the different colour ways so I decided to take a rain check. However I did pick up a Damier Azure Key Pouch which I've had my eye on for such a long time. These are great because you can clip your keys on and clip it onto the D Ring of a Louis Vuitton bag. Also, the pouch is large enough to fit a few cards in or coins. Keeping your keys in something like this is good if you're using a bag that can be easily scratched as it will protect or if you're using a small clutch or shoulder bag and you need to seriously scale down the contents of your bag.

Torrid

While in the Florida Mall, we headed into a plus size store called Torrid which is a shop that we don't have in the UK. I found Torrid to be a pretty strange store in that their online shop is fabulous but the shop itself was so densely packed with clothes, it was hard to see what was available and everything didn't look as attractive as it did when it was organised on the website. A bit like Yours Clothing in my opinion. What I also found about Torrid is that it is actually a little overpriced for what it is, although they did have a buy one, get one 50% off deal on.

I bought the Colour Block Knit Maxi Dress which was $68.50 here. Colour blocking is a huge trend and this one is a very bold but wearable piece. I love the navy blue, turquoise and white colours which are a combination that I never really wear but really like. It feels very soft against my skin although the material is very good quality, it doesn't feel too heavy to wear which is great with this hot weather we're having.

I then bought the Floral Chiffon Hi-Low Dress which was $64.50here. I've worn this loads since I bought it as I think it is a really different piece and it is great to wear to plus size events in the UK as wearing an American dress greatly reduces the chance of someone else wearing it at the same event. It has a tank top in black with a high low chiffon skirt covered in gorgeous floral print. This is probably my favourite dress in my wardrobe at the moment.

Aeropostale

Next I headed to Aeropostale which is a shop I've heard a lot about online after vlogger Bethany Mota released a collection with them. It was only when I came to writing this post that I realised that they now ship to the UK which is great as they had some GORGEOUS pieces in there.

The first item I picked up was actually from the Bethany Mota line and it was the Geo Print Kimono Top for $34. I love the gorgeous muted colours that are incorporated into this kimono, which really reminds me of a kaleidoscope design and it looks great when worn over white, black or one of the colours that are in the kimono. It is a really versatile piece that can be worn during the day, night or over swimwear. I have worn this non stop since getting back from America and even wore it on the plane coming home on top of a pale pink ASOS midi skirt, flip flops and a black peplum cami.

The second item I bought was this Tiger Football Tee. The sporty top reminded me of the American football style tops and I love the coral colour block detail. It is 3/4 length with 3/4 length sleeves and made from a super soft terry fabric which is light but warm. I bought this sporty style to throw on over a cami when I come out of a fitness class.

The last item I bought in Aeropostale was a small bottle of the Aero NYC 1987 fragrance. What I love about this perfume is that is super light with notes of beach flower and strawberry but it has base notes of velvet musk and driftwood which give it the depth that I like in a fragrance. It isn't the most long wearing of perfumes but its small size means that I can pop it in my bag and take it out and about with me.Wet Seal

While we were in the Florida Mall, I spotted shop called Wet Seal who also stocked plus sizes. I'd definitely recommend checking it out if you're in America as they had some gorgeous pieces. To see what I picked up, check out my post here.

Sephora

To see all of the beauty goodies I picked up, check out my Sephora haul in this bumper post here.

When you watch beauty girls on Youtube, it is very hard to not get sucked into wanting to visit Bath and Body Works. I knew I was running out of space in my suitcase so I made a beeline for the candles and bought the two that most appealed to me. If I visit America again, I'll definitely try out more of a variety of things from Bath and Body Works but for now I have the Mahogany Teakwood and the Watermelon Lemonade 3 wick candles to try out. They were on offer- 2 for $22 which I think is a really good price given that they're so strongly fragranced and should last a long time. The Mahogany Teakwood is often said to smell like Abercrombie and Fitch which I can't confirm nor deny but it does smell like a nice man... as strange as that sounds! I picked it because of the smell but also because of the colour in that it will look really nice in my bedroom. The Watermelon Lemonade candle smells AMAZING and as it is coral in colour, it will look fabulous in my home office.

Barbados Gift Shop

If you ever visit Barbados, I'd highly recommend the trip where you get to swim with the turtles. You go out on a gorgeous boat, have lunch and drinks then you get to clamber down from the boat, snorkel and then swim with the turtles. They're huge and for us it was really a once in a lifetime opportunity. Before you get on the boat there is a little gift shop and I picked up these beautiful handmade earrings. They were only cheap but they're well made and look so pretty. I can't wait to wear them as I've been looking for some special earrings to wear during the day and these are them!

So that's it for my honeymoon America and Barbados haul and I think I can definitely say that this is the largest haul I'll ever do on my blog!

Do let me know what lovely things you've been buying recently, or if you're saving your money up like I am now, what are you saving towards?

1 comment:

Wow. I am very jealous of all your purchases. I need both Kimonos. Gorgeous. Oh the handbags. I want them all. Love your ethos to replace many cheap bags. Looks like you had an amazing trip. It is so long since I have been shopping stateside I am a little jealous x